Tag Archives: 2001

Cars

Everything Pontiac Fans Should Know About The Last Generation GTO

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In Australia, automobile followers had been anticipating the return of the Holden Monaro in 2001. This sporty, two-door coupe was manufactured by the Aussie GM division and was produced till 2005. In truth, the “Land Down Under” skilled its personal golden period for small block efficiency autos, and you will not imagine a few of the coolest Australian muscle cars ever built.

Back within the U.S., across the early 2000s, the general public skilled renewed pleasure for efficiency muscle vehicles, and GM automakers seemed to rapidly capitalize on the renewed recognition. Bob Lutz, former GM President, did not initially have an acceptable platform to deliver the GTO again till he realized that the Holden Monaro could possibly be rebranded a GTO stateside.

Following some hiccups with importing the Monaro into the U.S., the GTO was lastly unveiled in 2004. Some changes had been required to cross U.S. rules, comparable to relocating the gasoline tank to the trunk for collision requirements. 

Motorsport

Watch This Neglected Toyota Supra Shine Again After 14 Years in a Backyard

Don’t be too arduous on the proprietor of this 1995 Toyota Supra turbo. He purchased it in 2001 and loved driving it for roughly 10 years earlier than his household started to develop. According to this new WD Detailing video, it was parked within the yard round 2011, and that is the place it stayed till lately, when the proprietor determined to offer it some much-needed love.

The video opens with the crimson Supra sunk into the grime, surrounded by trash luggage scattered all through the yard. Moss is clearly seen on the Mk4’s beefy bottom, and caked-on grime covers the sports activities automobile’s rocker panels. The grime seems like mud splatter, probably from heavy rains turning the bottom right into a muddy soup over time. The glass is filthy, the inside is moldy, and there is vital clearcoat harm on the Supra’s iconic wing. An inspection sticker on the windshield is dated 2011, supporting the declare that it has been parked for nicely over a decade.

Once again on the store, extra proof of this Supra’s prolonged slumber is revealed. The brake rotors appear like rusted pizza pans, and the calipers are too corroded to be restored with a easy cleansing. Gobs of leaves are pulled from the underbody cowl on the entrance, and two mouse nests are faraway from the cargo space on the again. More rodent leftovers are pulled from behind the hood insulation, which seems all however destroyed by critters. A very creepy second comes when the fuel door is opened, revealing a cluster of reside ants. Apparently, there was a small colony taking refuge across the filler neck. Yikes.

Of course, those that’ve seen WD Detailing movies understand how this story ends. After a number of passes with varied cleaners and polishes, the outdated Toyota seems fairly darn good. Sadly it would not look nice—years of neglect broken parts of the paint, and among the inside plastics are pale. There’s harm to the leather-based seats, and a few stains within the carpet simply will not come out. They attempt to begin the 2JZ, however the engine would not like outdated fuel. It turns over cleanly, however would not come near firing up.

Still, it is left in much better situation than it was, and it is a good place to begin for the proprietor to both do a full restoration, or just repair the mechanicals and get it again on the highway. Considering these Supras are actually price critical money, hopefully he will not return it to the yard whereas he decides his subsequent steps.

Motorsport

This 1020-HP Tesla-Powered Van Can Hang With A 911 Turbo S

The van you see right here may seem like a junky 2001 Honda Odyssey, but it’s far more exciting. Underneath the panels sits the chassis, inside, and drivetrain from a Tesla Model S Plaid. Delightfully named the “Plaidessey,” it was constructed by the oldsters from the BoostedBoiz YouTube channel, and it is able to beating just about something in a one-lap oval race.

The builders of the Plaidessey wished to see how the van would stack up towards some fast steel, in order that they introduced it to the Freedom Factory, an oval observe well-known for its YouTuber possession. Despite its unassuming physique type, the Tesla-powered Honda is ready to stomp a Tesla Model S and what appeared to be a extremely modified Audi in a head-to-head “spectator drag,” the place to automobiles line up on the oval and race towards one another for one lap.

Even with three motors and 1020 horsepower on faucet, the Plaidessey is not invincible. The of us at BoostedBoiz meet their match when the proprietor of the Freedom Factory, the legendary Cleetus McFarland, pulls up alongside in his 991-generation Porsche 911 Turbo S. The automobile’s been modified with a number of bolt-ons and extra enhance, suggesting it makes way over the 580 hp it left the manufacturing unit with.

McFarland and the Plaidessey race twice across the oval, and it is the Porsche that takes the win each instances. But the electrical Honda-badged van places up an excellent struggle, coming inside a automobile’s size of victory on the second run. We suspect McFarland’s expertise on the observe and the van’s rubbing bodywork probably had lots to do with the end result. 

Hopefully this may not be the final we see of the Plaidessey on the race observe. With a number of minor modifications we suspect it might carry out even higher. 

Motorsport

We Might Get An Electric Nissan GT-R By 2030

The Nissan GT-R is as previous as dust, tracing its roots again to 2001 with the Skyline GT-R concept. Despite its venerable age, the Japanese supercar had a superb 2023 when gross sales shot up by 584 percent within the United States. Still, the R35 technology is in dire want of a substitute.

At the Japan Mobility Show final October, Nissan hinted on the prospects of a next-gen automotive. This spectacular Hyper Force stole the present in Tokyo with its loopy design and the promise of 1,341 horsepower. It had entrance and rear motors, all-wheel drive, butterfly doorways, and a pixelated GT-R brand. Now, the corporate’s program design director suggests the eye-catching idea has an opportunity of evolving right into a manufacturing mannequin by 2030.


Motorsport

Skoda’s Most Innovative Sedan Had An Unnecessarily Complicated Trunk

After a 52-year hiatus, Skoda revived the “Superb” moniker in 2001 with the first generation of its modern flagship. It was essentially a stretched Volkswagen Passat (B5), and it even got the VW badge in China where it was sold as the Passat Lingyu. The second-gen model arrived in 2008 and it was a lot more interesting. Not just because it got a wagon version, but also due to the reason the sedan doubled as a hatchback/liftback.

With the 2024 Superb officially unveiled, we remembered the TwinDoor feature offered for the Mk2 model. It came at a time when parent company VW Group wasn’t obsessed with cost-cutting measures, allowing its engineers to innovate and implement interesting hardware. And yes, that Superb had dual rear opening by allowing owners to either lift the whole tailgate or only the trunk lid.

So, how did it work? You first had to unlock the vehicle and then press the button located at the bottom side of the trunk lid to open only the metal part. If you wanted to raise the whole tailgate, if you first had to push a different button mounted to the right side of the other button we mentioned. Upon pressing it, the third brake light would flash twice. After that, the owner had to push the first button and raise the tailgate simultaneously.

While the Superb Combi had the aperture for the rear license plate built into the tailgate, it was mounted lower on the bumper for the liftback. In an interview for the official Skoda site, Zdeněk Cibulka, exterior designer of the Mk2, explained the unusual layout:

“This solution was anchored in the design of the rear pillars and the entire rear end. I also had to design the aperture for the double-operated bonnet [trunk/tailgate] and we spent a long time figuring out where the registration plate would go. In the end, it moved into the rear bumper, a rather unusual solution. But visually it helped the Superb a lot.”

The TwinDoor was only offered for the Superb Mk2 as the subsequent generation introduced in 2015 was only a hatchback, much like the newly introduced model, complemented by the even more spacious wagon. The Mk4 isn’t stepping on the Passat’s toes that much since VW has decided to drop the sedan and sell its midsize car strictly as a wagon.

NewsNew

2001 RM250 KEVIN WINDHAM TRIBUTE PROJECT: 2-STROKE TUESDAY

On this week’s 2-Stroke Tuesday we provide the first take a look at our accomplished 2001 Suzuki RM250 Ok-Dub Tribute undertaking. This construct began over two years in the past and technically continues to be not finished however we couldn’t maintain in our pleasure any longer! Tim Sharp did all of the wrench turning on this undertaking and we are able to’t thank him sufficient for his consideration to element. Our fearless chief “Ron $-Shot Lawson” did the honors within the studio so take pleasure in.

We labored with a handful of Suzuki race crew sponsors from 2001 like Lightspeed Carbon Fiber, Motul, Excel Rims, Michelin Tires, Pro Circuit, Mototass, Twin Air and Acerbis. Now as a result of it is a tribute and never a reproduction undertaking we additionally introduced some new folks into the combination that included Ride Engineering, Dubya USA, Superlite sprockets, Boyco Racing, ODI, AHM Factory Services, Specbolt, Gutts Racing and Throttle Syndicate topped the construct off with an superior retro graphics package.

The Ride Engineering full clamps bolted proper as much as our inventory body with completely no points and look wonderful as you’ll be able to see. The cut up fashion design brings a few of that modern-day know-how to the desk that may solely profit the general dealing with of this 20 plus yr previous RM250.

Pro Circuit was an enormous supporter of the 250cc Suzuki crew after they have been on two-strokes so we wished to make use of their exhaust. They even discovered a silencer with a stinger on it identical to the crew used again in 2001. Blew our minds. Specbolt offered us with a whole Nikel Wurks bolt package that actually clothes up the bike, we extremely advocate spending the cash on new nuts and bolts when doing a undertaking like this!

AHM Factory Services dealt with all our suspension wants together with the specialty coatings. Brandon and his crew made positive that the colours have been as near what crew Suzuki ran again within the day after which added some addition bling as nicely. We don’t know the way they made our clapped out suspension look so good.

If you might be constructing a Suzuki of any sort gold rims are the cherry on high. Dubya USA provides a inventory rebuild wheel  service that can depart you speechless. The manufacturing unit crew had loopy excessive greenback hubs that had mild gray tint to them, Dubya did a lightweight gray Cerakote, changed all of the bearings after which laced up a set of gold Excel rims utilizing chrome steel spokes. The photos don’t do the job they did justice! We once more added some bling with new {hardware} from Specbolt, a aluminum rear sprocket from Superlite, DID chain, Lightspeed Carbon Fiber and wrapped all of it up with some Michelin Starcross tires.

Teddy Boyco from Boyco Racing in Orange County California took care of all our engine work utilizing Pro X elements. Teddy has been across the bike trade for a very long time and his small store in California does an enormous quantity of labor for folks nationwide . If you might be having a crank rebuilt at your native store and they’re sending it out  there’s a good likelihood Teddy is perhaps aside of that course of.

It seems to be so good we nearly don’t wish to experience it! We at the moment are considering some retro No Fear gear, Aria helmet, Scott goggles and Alpinestar boots identical to Ok-Dub wore again in 2001 can be applicable for the motion images.

Motorsport

See Fifth-Gen Honda Prelude SH Get First Wash In 10 Years

The Honda Prelude, produced from 1978 to 2001, was a front-wheel drive sports coupe based on the Honda Accord. Although some enthusiasts may overlook it in favor of the Acura Integra and Honda S2000 as more performance-oriented sports cars, the Prelude offered a variety of features including a powerful 2.2-liter VTEC engine, a precise five-speed manual transmission, and quick reflexes.

Recently, the WD Detailing crew decided to give some love to a Honda Prelude SH that had been sitting dormant for over 10 years. They set out to give it a makeover. The Prelude is mostly clean, straight, and unmodified, but it does have some rust issues, particularly around the rear quarter panels. The SH trim level was the top of the line for the fifth and final generation of the Prelude, featuring an upgraded handling package with a stability control system known as the Active Torque Transfer System or ATTS.

As is typical in WD Detailing videos, there’s always a surprise. This time, it was a dead bird found in the footwell of the back seat. It remains a mystery how a bird ended up in an enclosed car with the windows up, but fortunately, cleaning it up was easier than dealing with a rodent infestation or bug problems.

One useful car cleaning tip shared in the video is to start by washing the wheels first. This might seem counter-intuitive, especially for those who wash their cars from top to bottom. However, WD Detailing suggests that washing the wheels first can minimize the risk of spraying dirt and grime from the wheels all over the freshly cleaned paint.

Overall, the Prelude remains in good shape except for the rust. The interior is remarkably clean, with no noticeable tears in the upholstery, and the dashboard is free of cracks or warping. According to the owner, the car was in running condition when parked, which means the Prelude could serve as a nice, original 1990s sports coupe or a solid platform for serious performance upgrades.